Christophe Dugarry Says Barcelona Are a 'Club of Clowns,' Have No Class

Former Barcelona forward Christophe Dugarry has slammed his old employers, saying the Catalan club is filled with "clowns."

The Frenchman also said the Blaugrana are classless and have no direction in the transfer market.

He made the statements during a radio segment on RMC Sport (h/t Goal's Tom Webber):

"It's a club of clowns. Everything is done backwards. They buy [Philippe] Coutinho, [Ousmane] Dembele, they buy guys and then sell them. You get the impression there is no project in this club.

"At every transfer window there is a problem. They've recruited very badly since the departures of Xavi and [Andres] Iniesta. They've spent loads.

"And above all, they have a very bad image. There are far too many people who do not have the elegance, the class that there should be at a club of this standing. It's really a club that has no class."

Alvaro Barrientos/Associated Press

Dugarry spent just one season at the Camp Nou, scoring no goals in seven appearances. Per SFR Sport (h/t SportsJoe's Robert Redmond), he has said he was deeply unhappy at the club and even pretended to cry so he could force a move back to France.

Barcelona have endured a few difficult days, with Lionel Messi and sporting director Eric Abidal clashing over an interview the latter gave to Sport. Per RAC-1 (h/t Juan Jimenez of AS), that led to a meeting to clear the air, but after the 1-0 defeat to Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey, full-back Jordi Alba reignited the controversy:

On the pitch, the Catalan side have lost two of their last four outings in all competitions. The switch to new manager Quique Setien has not gone smoothly, and injuries to key forwards Luis Suarez and Dembele have only complicated matters.

No forward depth arrived in the January transfer window, despite the clear need for it, and Barcelona's transfer strategy came under criticism as a result.

Big-money signings like Dembele and Coutinho have failed, and the club's asking price for the latter has been dropping, per Mundo Deportivo (h/t Goal):

The latest controversy only adds to the pressure on club president Josep Maria Bartomeu, who is already a target because of the lack of success in Europe and on the transfer market in recent years.

Sports writer Dermot Corrigan expects new presidential elections in the summer:

Setien will return to the Estadio Benito Villamarin to take on his former club Real Betis with his new side on Sunday.